Agriculture for Nutrition and Health

A4NH works to ensure that safe, diverse, and nutritionally adequate diets are available for consumers in all countries, especially the poor.

The founder of HarvestPlus, Dr. Howarth Bouis, won the World Food Prize, along with three colleagues from the International Potato Center, for pioneering work in addressing the global problem of micronutrient deficiencies, known as hidden hunger. HarvestPlus and its partners have reached at least 20 million farming households in Africa, Asia, and Latin America with biofortified planting materials for key staple crops: provitamin A cassava, maize, and sweet potato; iron beans and pearl millet; and zinc rice and wheat. In 2016, the government of Uganda released five high-iron bean varieties, developed with support from HarvestPlus and partners, that will increase dietary iron—and reduce the prevalence of anemia—for the millions of Ugandans who eat beans every day. Research on value chains for enhanced nutrition continues to make a strong case for beans and legumes as part of a healthy, diverse diet to tackle malnutrition.

Over 300 researchers, policy makers, practitioners, and funders attended the first Agriculture, Nutrition, and Health Academy Week, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Academy Week included two days of learning labs and a three-day agri-health research conference, which was particularly well attended by young researchers.